Excavator Quick Hitch and Attachment Change SWMS

Suits excavation, civil, drainage and landscaping contractors who change buckets, breakers, augers and other attachments on excavators. It covers compatibility checks, hitch inspection, making the machine safe, hose connections, lock-on testing, working on foot near the machine and pack-up. General excavator operation, lifting loads and rock breaker work are covered by separate SWMS.

Changing attachments on an excavator is high risk construction work when powered mobile plant moves in the work area (WHS Regulation s 291(o)), so that item is ticked. Tick the others the job involves, such as energised services or overhead lines, a trench deeper than 1.5 metres, or a road in use.

Learn More: What Is A Safe Work Method Statement?
Have you ever been asked to provide a SWMS on a project in Queensland? Read our guide to what a Safe Work Method Statement is and when you need one.

What Is Covered In Our Excavator Quick Hitch and Attachment Change SWMS?

The job steps run in the order the work is done, from pre-start checks to finishing up. The hazards and controls include:

• Attachment falling off the quick hitch
• Failed locking pin or back-up lock
• Stored hydraulic energy moving the boom or arm
• Crushing between the hitch and the attachment
• Hydraulic oil injection and burns
• Incompatible attachment and hitch
• Machine tipping on soft or sloping ground
• Workers struck by the moving machine
• Overhead power lines and underground services
• Heavy attachment handling and sharp teeth
• Slips on spilled hydraulic oil
• Attachments falling from a trailer during transport

High Risk Construction Work

These high risk construction work items (WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) s 291) are already ticked because they are part of this work. Tick any others that apply to your job:

• Is carried out in an area at a workplace in which there is any movement of powered mobile plant

Licences, Training and Competency

• General construction induction training card (white card) for construction work
• Excavator operator trained and assessed as competent on the machine, its quick hitch and the attachments used (no high risk work licence class applies to operating an excavator)
• Documented training for the operator on the type and model of quick hitch fitted to the machine
• Competent person for hitch inspections and tolerance checks, as the hitch maker’s instructions set out
• Spotter briefed on hand signals and the exclusion zone
• Site induction

Legislation and Codes of Practice Referenced

• Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld)
• Mobile Crane Code of Practice 2024 (section 13.5, quick hitches)
• Managing Risks of Plant in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Excavation Work Code of Practice 2021
• Hazardous Manual Tasks Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Risks of Hazardous Chemicals in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Noise and Preventing Hearing Loss at Work Code of Practice 2021
• Managing the Work Environment and Facilities Code of Practice 2021
• First Aid in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks Code of Practice 2021
• Electrical Safety Act 2002 (Qld)
• Electrical Safety Regulation 2026 (Qld): overhead electric line exclusion zones in schedule 2
• Electrical Safety Code of Practice 2020 – Working near overhead and underground electric lines
• AS 4772 and ISO 13031 (quick hitch standards, as named in the Mobile Crane Code of Practice 2024)

What You Get

• An editable Microsoft Word document (13 pages), laid out on A4 landscape pages
• Business, client, job and document details typed once and filled in on every page, plus a space for your logo
• The high risk construction work checklist, worded as WHS Regulation s 291, and the construction project question (s 292)
• A worker and health and safety representative consultation record
• Qualifications, plant, PPE, hazardous chemicals, safety equipment, permits, references and emergency arrangements filled in for this work
• A 5 x 5 risk matrix, and job steps with initial and residual risk scores and the people responsible
• Implementing, monitoring and review requirements, an additional controls log, revision history and a worker sign-on sheet

Review and adjust it for your site, your plant and the way your crew does the job, and talk it through with your workers before work starts. If you have any trouble downloading this SWMS, you can contact us at any time. Please make sure you read our Disclaimer before downloading this SWMS.